Legislative Fact Sheet

AN ACT BANNING FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION, S XXXXX

SENATOR WILL BROWNSBERGER, LEAD SENATE SPONSOR 
REPRSENTATIVE SARAH PEAK, LEAD HOUSE SPONSOR

PROTECT GIRLS IN MASSACHUSETTS FROM HARM FROM FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION (FGM)

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woman shadowFGM involves removing part or all of a girl’s healthy sex organs and surrounding tissue for non-medical reasons resulting in health consequences, death in childbirth and lifelong trauma.

The statistics available on FGM in the US are speculations mostly based on populations from FGM affected communities. In 2000, the African Women’s Health Center at Brigham and Women’s Hospital estimated that 227,887 women and girls were at risk of FGM, 5,231 living in Massachusetts, including Boston, Lawrence and Worcester. In the past year, as victims have begun to speak out publicly, reports of transporting girls out of the country to be cut while vacationing have been widely disseminated in US news. A new prevalence study is underway at the Federal level at the request of victims and anti-FGM activists.

 

 

1

140 million women and
girls worldwide live with
FGM consequences.

 

  6

FGM is generally performed on young
girls without anesthetics and can have
lifelong health consequences including
chronic infections, hemorrhage, severe
pain during urination, menstruation
and sexual intercourse
2

30 million girls
under the age of 15
are at risk.

 

7

FGM is recognized internationally as a 
human rights violation, torture and an 
extreme form of discrimination against 
women and girls.
3

Girls at risk reside in
Boston, Lawrence and
Worcester.

 

 8

FGM is unlike male circumcision 
because it is carried out with the 
intent of subjugating girls and 
controlling their bodies. Additionally, 
FGM damages a girl’s sex organs
4

22 States, in addition to
the Federal Government,
have passed laws banning
FGM, in some cases
as amendments to child
abuse laws.

 

9 

 

Ending this harmful practice requires 
robust local laws because harm to 
children is a local concern and most 
effectively handled at the local level.

 
 5

FGM is performed to
control a girl’s sexuality
and to ensure virginity
until marriage and fidelity
in marriage.

* numbered facts provided by Equality now. More info visit www.equalitynow.org

usa22 STATES HAVE PASSED A LAW

California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia
Illinois, Louisiana, Kansas, Maryland, Minnesota, 
Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North 
Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, 
Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia, and Wisconsin

 

  State Only applies to
minors (under 18
unless otherwise
specified)		 Parent/ Guard-
ian & circum-
ciser subject to
prosecution		 "Vacation
Provision"
banning travel
outside the
state for FGM		 Medically 
necessary
exception		 Cultural/ ritual
reasons, and/or
consent not a
defense

Provisions for
community 
education &
outreach
  California x x   x   x
  Colorado Under 16 x   x x x
  Delaware x x   x x  
  Florida x x x x x  
  Georgia x x x x x  
  Illinois   x   x x  
  Kansas x x x x x  
  Louisiana x x x x x  
  Maryland x x   x x  
arrow MASSACHUSETTS x x x x x x
  Minnesota       x x x
  Missouri Under 17 x   x x  
  Nevada x x x x x  
  New Jersey x x x x x  
  New York x x   x x x
  North Dakota x     x x  
  Oklahoma       x x  
  Oregon x x   x x x
  Rhode Island            
  Tennessee       x x  
  Texas x     x    
  West Virginia x x   x x  
  Wisconsin x     x x  
*Fact sheet provided by Equality Now. More info visit www.equalitynow.org

 

ENDORSED BY

  • Ethiopian Community Mutual Assistance Association (Cambridge)
  • Islamic Society of Boston Cultural Center (Roxbury)
  • Massachusetts Citizens for Children
  • Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts
  • Somali Development Center (Jamaica Plain)
  • South End Community Health Center
  • Women's Bar Association (Boston)
  • Inter-African Committee USA
  • Safe Hands for Girls
  • The AHA Foundation

 

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